Roller conveyer



D, ,5, 1939- s. r-:GGLEsToN 2,182,756

ROLLER CONVEYER Filed July 28, 1958 @q-1 f/M v^ 5 @L6-Sify QM j; www@ D@ 10/2 ff Q Y 0 W10-Q $5 Patented Dec. 5, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ROLLER CONVEYER Smith Eggleston, St. Paul, Minn., assgnor to Standard Conveyor Company, North St. Paul, Minn., a corporation of Minnesota Application July 28, 1938, Serial N0. 221,803

8 Claims. (C1. 193-35) This invention relates to a roller conveyer of arm I2 connected to a spring I3 by a horizontal the general character described in my co-pending rod I4. The shafts Il! are parallel to the shafts application, Serial No, 218,624, filed July l1, 1938. 'I and project in a similar manner from perfora- It is an object of this invention to provide a tions in the frame members 4, being held in place resilient and independently movable supports for Each of the rods I4 is movably supported on the rollers whereby movement of heavy loads the lower extremities of a pair of the lever arms having uneven riding surfaces is facilitated and i2 and has a pair of the springs I3 connected the rollers are protected against damage from respectively to its ends. An end of each spring I3 A particular object is to provide conveyer a large washer I5, the latter being held against rollers which are individually movable substanmovement away from the spring by a cotter key tially vertically and normally held in a pre- I6 projecting from a perforation in the rod, as determined elevated position by a novel arrangebest shown in Fig. 3. The opposite end of each lf ment of springs and levers whereby the force of spring is xed relative to the frame by bending 15 the springs is exerted on the levers at an angle the end coil about the shaft I for supporting to the direction of movement of the rollers and an adjacent pair of the levers. The upper surwith substantial mechanical advantage over the fa ce of each lever arm II is a cam surface enload. gaging and supporting a sleeve Il which is freely Other Objects are to provide a, Conveyer along revoluble on the shaft 'I between the end of the 20 which the loads may be moved with equal facility roller and frame member 4. in either direction; to reduce the weight of the The level arms ll are Substantially Shorter springs required to support heavy loads, and to than the arms I2 so that the springs I3 have a render the couveyer unusually Compact and neat substantial mechanical advantage over the load in appearance by novel mechanism for crans applied to the lever arms II. The springs I3 are 25 mtting a predetermined fractional part of the normally completely retracted while the roller total load from the rollers to the springs for Suppolllmg Shafts l are held at the upper eX- rcstralnlng deflection of the Yonextremities of the slots 6. As best shown in Fig. 2 Referring tc the accompanying drawing: each spring I3 is formed with the several conroller conveyer with a novel arrangement of by cotter keys. 5.

i overloads and impact. is confined between one of the lever arms I2 and 10,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved volutions tightly contracted one against another 30A roller Conveyer; so that there is no deflection or extension of the Fig. 2 is a part side e1evation on an enlarged Serine until a load 0f a predetermined substanscale and part vertical section taken on the line l'lal magnitude l5 applied lllefeto- Heal/'Y lOClS 2 -2 of Figl 3, and are usually supported on two or more of the Fig. 3 is a vertical cross section taken on the IOllelS 5 and may be mOVed freely alODg lille COH- 35 line 3-3 of Fig. 1. veyer in either direction. When the load on any The Conveyer has a frame Comprising spaced, particular roller exceeds a predetermined magparallel side members 4 extending longitudinally U-ltude, Ordinarily Called the fated Capaety 0f of the Conveyer and rigidly Connected together the roller, the roller is deflected downward from 40 by cross members 5. The members 4 are angle its elevated position in the slots 6. This causes 40 bars formed with vertically elongated slots 6 near one 0r both of the Springs I3 Supporting the their upper edges to receive and Conne poriroller to be elongated, an increment of the load zontal shafts 1 for supporting conveyer rollers 8. being transmitted through the connected lever The rollers 8 are freely revoluble on the shafts 1 arms Il and I2 to Cause the leVerS t0 l'lVOt 21701113 and the ends of the shafts project from the outer their supporting shaft Ill while the anti-friction 45 faces of the members 4 and are confined against sleevles I1 ride on the cam surfaces of the longitudinal movement by cotter keys 9. These arms II. cotter keys project from suitable perforations in By this arrangement movement of heavy loads the ends of the shafts. Each of the shafts 'I is having uneven riding surfaces is facilitated and 5o movable vertically within the limits of a pair of unusually smooth operation results. Any un- 50 the slots 6 and is normally held at the upper evenness or projection on the riding surface of a extremity of these slots by a pair of levers pivoted load which would have a tendency to overload on a horizontal shaft I0. Each lever has a a particular roller or obstruct the movement of laterally projecting portion or arm II for supthe load causes the roller encountered to be deporting a roller and a downwardly projecting flected downwardly so that the projection can- 55 not damage the roller or materially interfere with the movement of the load along the conveyer. My arrangement of angularly disposed lever arms further makes it possible to extend the relatively long, light springs substantially longitudinally of the conveyer and to locate these springs within the space defined by the planes through the upper and lower edges of the side frame members or rails so that an unusually compact and neat conveyer is afforded.

It will be evident that the capacity of the rollers to sustain loads is aiected by the stiffness and lengths of the springs i3 and the direction in which the force of these springs is applied, and these elements may be changed to meet the various conditions found in practice. The degree of mechanical advantage of the springs over the load may also be varied between wide limits by suitable changes in the angle between the arms i i and l 2, or in the relative lengths of said arms, or in the form of the cam surfaces of the arms l i on which the rollers are supported, or two or more of these controlling elements may be changed within the scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

I-Iaving described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

l. In a roller conveyer, a frame having spaced side members, a roller extending between said members and movable substantially vertically relative to the frame, a lever pivotally connected to said frame and having a laterally projecting arm for supporting said roller and a downwardly pro jecting arm to be actuated, and resilient means engaging said downwardly projecting arm to maintain said roller in elevated position.

2. In a roller conveyer, a frame having spaced side members, a roller extending between said members and movable substantially vertically reln ative to the frame, means limiting the upward movement of said roller relative to the frame, a lever pivotally connected to said frame and having an arm supporting said roller in a plane offset horizontally from the pivotal axis'of said lever and a second, relatively long, arm projecting at an angle to said first mentioned arm, and resilient means engaging said relatively long arm to normally maintain said roller at the upper limit of its movement and permitting downward deiiection of said roller under loads of predetermined magnitude.

3. In a roller conveyer, a frame, a roller support, means guiding said support for limited, substantially vertical movement relative to said frame, a roller revolubly mounted on said support, a lever pivotally connected to said frame and having a laterally projecting arm operatively engaging said support and a relatively long arm projecting at an angle to said rst mentioned arm, the axis of said roller being offset longitudinally of the conveyer from the pivotal axis of said lever, and resilient means connected to the free extremity of said relatively long arm to raise said support and roller toward the upper limit of movement relative to the frame.

4. In a roller conveyer, a frame, a roller support, means guiding said support for limited, substantially vertical movement relative to the frame, a roller revolubly mounted on said support, a lever pivotally connected to said frame and having a laterally projecting arm operatively engaging said support, the axis of said roller being offset longitudinally of the conveyer from the pivotal axis of said lever, and a coiled spring actuating said lever to raise said support and roller and extending vsubstantially longitudinally of the conveyer.

5. In a roller conveyer, a frame having spaced, parallel side members, a roller support extending substantially horizontally between said side members, means guiding said support for limited, substantially vertical movement relative to the frame, a roller revolubly mounted on said support, a lever pivotally connected to said frame and having a laterally projecting cam surface operatively engaging said support, the axis of said roller being offset substantially horizontally from the pivotal axis of said lever, and resilient means for actuating said lever to raise said support and roller.

6. In a roller conveyer, a frame having spaced side members, a roller shaft extending substantially horizontally across said side members and movable substantially vertically relative to the same, a roller carried by said shaft, a pair of levers pivotally connected to said frame members respectively ancl having arms projecting in substantially parallel relation to each other from their pivotal axes, said shaft being supported on said arms, and resilient means for actuating said levers to raise said shaft and roller relative to the frame.

'7. In a roller conveyer, a frame having spaced side members, a roller shaft extending substantially horizontally across said side members and movable substantially vertically relative to the same, a roller mounted on said shaft, a pair of levers pivotally connected to said frame members respectively and having arms projecting in substantially parallel relation to each other and from their pivotal axes, said arms having cam surfaces supporting said shaft, and resilient means for actuating said levers to raise said shaft and roller.

8. In a roller conveyer, a frame having spaced side members, a roller shaft extending substantially horizontally between said side members, said members having vertically elongated guide slots confining the ends of said shaft, a roller mounted on said shaft, a pair of levers pivotally connected to said frame members respectively and having arms projecting in substantially parallel relation to each other from their pivotal axes, said shaft being supported on said arms, and resilient means for actuating said levers to raise said shaft toward the upper extremity of said slots.

SMITH EGGLESTON. 

